It's a tragic day for Belgium, and the world over. At least 28—including 22 children—were killed when a bus crashed in a tunnel near Sierre, Switzerland. Another 24 children sustained injuries when the bus crashed head-on into a tunnel wall. The children were on their way back to the Belgian towns of Lommel and Heverlee after a skiing trip at Val d'Anniviers in the Swiss Alps.
The bus was one of three transporting the children, ten of whom are Dutch, and so far officials are mystified as to the cause of the crash. The tunnel was reportedly safe, the buses new, the conditions normal, the drivers well-rested. Toptours, the coach company, had "an excellent reputation." Both drivers were killed in the crash.
Right now, though, the priority is dealing with distressed relatives still arriving at the schools in Belgium. A helpline has been set up to assist family.
"There is this terrible fear and uncertainty," said Andre Joseph Leonard, the archbishop of Belgium. "There are about eight about whom we don't know what happened, leaving their parents in terrible fear."
The rescue operation is said to involve more than 200 people, and eight helicopters flying the injured to hospitals in Lausanne, Bern and other Swiss cities.
"This tragedy will hit the whole of Belgium," said Belgium's ambassador to Switzerland, Jan Luykx. "The magnitude of the accident is difficult to take in. For the moment I am concentrating on the practical aspects. The emotional side will come when we meet the families."
Our hearts go out to the families affected. As a parent, are you ever reluctant to allow your child to go on school trips? Sometimes despite the most stringent safety measures, tragedy still strikes. So devastating.
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